Avtron AV5 SMARTach II™ sensors are magnetoresistive, severe duty incremental quadrature sensors for the AV485, AV685, or AV850 rotary encoders. The AV5 is also usable in applications where an encoder housing is not needed – simply mount the AV5 with your bracket, and use an AV850 or other rotor. Also available: XR5 and XR12 sensors for hazardous duty applications.

The AV5 is ideal for applications where mounting on a large diameter through-shaft is needed, including large hollow shafts for cooling water or air. The AV5 sensor + AV850 rotor combination permits through-shafts up to 4.5" [115mm].

The AV5 offers a full range of electrical connector options, including IP67 cable, IP66 MS connectors, and IP65 Industrial with built-in terminal strips. The AV5 sensor is fully protected against all types of wiring errors, including short circuits, reverse voltage, and phase-to-phase shorts. It is one tough sensor! For larger bore applications, use AV12 sensors with the AV125 encoder (or as stand-alone).

In This Section

A Quad B refers to the set of output quadrature signals from an incremental quadrature encoder to indicate speed and direction, including complements: A, A NOT, B, B NOT (, , , ). Most Avtron encoders offer A Quad B output at no extra cost. For more information on quadrature- Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quadrature_phase

A machined surface (NEMA 56C, NEMA FC) on the non-drive end of the motor is used to mount bearingless or pancake encoders such as Avtron AV56 THIN-LINE II™ encoders. Solid shaft, coupled tachometers also flange mounted using flange adapters, also called flowerpots.

An encoder that produces pulses in proportion to distance moved or rotated. Incremental encoders can also have a marker pulse Z, Z NOT (, ) once per revolution to provide a position reference. Avtron produces a full range of incremental rotary encoders.

The chip or output circuit that forms the electrical pulses output from the encoder. Avtron has extremely advanced line driver technology to prevent damage from overvoltage and short circuits. Avtron offers optional high-power line drivers to permit Avtron encoder signals to travel farther down long wires to remote controller/drive locations without the need for repeaters or amplifiers.

Magnetic and magnetoresistive encoders typically use a magnetized rotor with north and south poles lined up around the perimeter of the disk. A magnetoresistive sensor detects the transitions, and these are the counts or pulses generated by the encoder. Magnetic encoders withstand dirt, dust, water, and temperature changes far better than optical encoders.

A magnetized disk with multiple north and south poles lined up around the perimeter of the disk. A magnetoresistive sensor detects the transitions and generates the pulses generated by the magnetic encoder.

The Marker Pulse occurs once per revolution. The purpose of the marker pulse is to provide a repeatable home position location for positioning applications. The marker pulse is often abbreviated as "ØZ" or "Z" in the USA and "C" or "N" in Europe.

Modular Encoders mount to a machined C-face or flange adapter on the motor (drive or non-drive end). Modular encoders consist of a rotor that mounts on the shaft, and a stator that bolts to the motor frame. Modular encoders are very rugged, and Avtron encoders feature Wide-Gap sensors to avoid complex shimming or fitting to the motor. Modular C-face encoders are typically used on DC motors; but some AC motors, such as Rockwell’s RPM III AC and Marathon’s Blue and Black Max motors, have C-faces standard on the non-drive end for mounting an encoder.

Pulses Per Revolution. Most Avtron encoders output quadrature pulses, with four times as many lines as pulses. Often lines can be counted in the drive/speed controller for higher resolution applications.

Avtron encoders use special optical sensors and magnetoresistive sensors, combined with proprietary circuit designs to allow the sensor to be located much farther from the magnetic rotor or optical disk. This eliminates sensor crashes and makes mounting easy and forgiving of mechanical variation.